Fernande Olivier, Pablo Picasso and their friends

Fernande Olivier's ability to compile and embody in her writings the life she shared with Pablo Picasso brings us closer to the moment in which Picasso began to stand out in the avant-garde artistic movements, but it also shows us the poor, shy and enamored young man. In Picasso et ses amis (1933) and Intimate souvenirs. Écris pour Picasso (1988), Olivier recounts in a direct and sincere way the years of living together with the artist in the Bateau-Lavoir. Olivier also wrote a series of stories and poems (still unpublished) that show a great sensitivity and strong intellectual interest. In addition to a window to get to know the genius a little better, this exhibition - the first dedicated to her in Spain - also aims to be a tribute to this artist, beyond her relationship with Picasso.

Unpublished documents and photographs, audiovisual testimonies and several portraits signed by Fernande Olivier's circle of friends are the main works that make up this unique exhibition. Among them we find the signatures of Kees van Dongen, Joaquim Sunyer, Ubaldo Oppi, Marie Laurencin, as well as portraits painted by Pablo Picasso that were key in the development of Cubism.

The exhibition will focus on the texts and documents that allow us to trace the life and relationships of Fernande Olivier, one of the few female voices that has reached us as a direct witness of that time.

The project has included the La Belle Fernande Archives (ALBF) and such important providers as the Musée Picasso in Paris, the Bilbao Fine Arts Museum, Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, Düsseldorf Kunstsammlung, the Museo Reina Sofía and the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, among others.